Case Study 8 September 2018
North East prescription for success
NewcastleGateshead Convention Bureau ’ s director of business events Paul Szomoru shares insights into its strategy for targeting associations .
NewcastleGateshead Convention Bureau ’ s Conference Ambassador Programme involves 600 academics , researchers and professionals from across the region ’ s universities .
It is 17 years old and , in 2015 , we won Best Industry Partnership for our work on the programme at the ABPCO annual awards .
It ’ s our number one source for new business and is absolutely key to attracting international association conferences to the region in areas of specialism that we excel in .
Our main sector strengths and expertise in NewcastleGateshead are sustainability and medical sciences , tech and digital , offshore and marine , plus professional business services and logistics .
We work hard to identify academics and professionals in these fields that may have an influence on where their next association conference is held . We ’ ll then work closely – the ambassador providing the specialised knowledge and our team pulling together high-quality bid documentation , offering unbiased advice on venues , booking delegate accommodation , helping to create exciting social programmes and supporting throughout the whole process – all free of charge .
Our bureau works in close partnership with Newcastle and Northumbria universities ; we hold joint events for academics and support staff to show them the benefits of bringing a conference here . We also profile the key research strengths of the universities . This has resulted in us bidding and winning recent major association conferences including The European Thyroid Association ’ s 41st Annual Meeting , The Association of the Study of Obesity ’ s 5th UK Congress on Obesity , The Association for the Study of Medical Education ’ s Annual Scientific Meeting and the British Educational Research Association Annual Conference .
Newcastle University is best recognised for its strengths in ageing , biomedicine and clinical trials – it has one of the UK ’ s leading medical schools and is also home to the Newcastle University Institute for Ageing ( NUIA ), the largest facility of its kind in Europe .
Meanwhile , The International Centre for Life is the UK ’ s first biotechnology village , a landmark £ 90m development which houses Life Knowledge Park and the Institute of Human Genetics . Here , the first licence was granted by the fertility regulator to create a baby with three genetic parents , a development that will be used to prevent children dying from genetic diseases .
Newcastle University is also one of the key partners in Newcastle Helix , Newcastle ' s £ 350m flagship project that brings together
academia , public sector , communities , business and industry in order to create a global centre for urban innovation in the heart of the city . The National Innovation Centre on the site will be home to the National Innovation Centre for Ageing , the National Innovation Centre for Data and the National Institute for Health Research Innovation Observatory ( NIHRIO ).
NewcastleGateshead is also a major centre for the renewable , offshore and subsea energy industries and is one of six Centres for Offshore Renewable Engineering ( CORE ) in England .
The region is home to the world ’ s most advanced steel tube facility , Newcastle